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Monday, May 2, 2011

Breadcrumbs: Leave a Physical Trace Behind

When my descendants visit my former residences (from the carefully prepared list that I've left behind) what do you think they'll find? If the properties haven't been altered too much they will undoubtedly find lilacs.

I love lilacs.They are a beautiful celebration of spring and the smell takes me right back to my childhood. My childhood home in Connecticut had easily twenty-five lilac bushes scattered in clumps around the property. Each spring I would clip the fragrant flowers and bring them into house, typically placing the jugs in the kitchen and my bedroom.

As I've gotten older I've intentionally planted lilacs around the property of the homes my husband and I have purchased. In this life it allows me to continue to enjoy my favorite flower. Just as importantly, it's a silent, indirect reminder of my existence. A secret code that could only be deciphered by my family members. No, there is no sign that these lilacs were planted by Marian Pierre-Louis. All the same, they will be a living, physical reminder of my existence.

Genealogists spend a lot of time researching their ancestors. Some even reserve time to write their own memoirs. More often, it's like the cobbler's children who have no shoes. Genealogists focus so much on the past that some forget to leave behind their own story.

I'm intrigued with the concept of leaving a breadcrumb trail for my future descendants. Whether that means in archival documents or actual physical clues that become part of the environment.

Breadcrumbs is a new sub-series of the Roots & Rambles blog. Favorite plants and trees like lilacs are just one way of leaving a trace of yourself behind. I hope you'll follow along on the journey and consider leaving breadcrumbs for your descendants to find as we discover the possibilities together.

Photo Credit: Photo by PINEAPPLE XVI used under the creative commons license.

13 comments:

One of my good friends was dividing her daylilies about a year after her husband has died; I took about 12 fronds and planted them in my garden, and grew them up to a nice size, then divided them again, and passed some to my son and my daughter to plant in their yards in memory of John, who'd been not only our friend, but their English teacher. I don't know the variety, but for us, these are always the "Sullivan Lilies."

Beautiful concept - and beautiful lilacs. They don't grow well in the spots I've lived since I left New England, but they do remind me of home.

For me it's hydrangeas and daylilies. If I have to have them in pots in the house if we're living in the Arctic Circle, so be it. I have to have them. I have daylilies from my mother's garden, my grandmother-in-laws, and even a fabulous Cape Cod garden where we used to stay in the summers.

It's also the houses themselves. I've never lived in one where I haven't moved a door or a wall.

I have a special white lilac which is a "descendant" of the huge one which was in the garden of the house that I grew up in. When my parents decided to move from there, after 35 years, each (grown up, by then) child received a white lilac from the tree. If/when I move, I will make sure I have rooted cutting to take with me. It's in full bloom just now :-) Jo

Great idea. I have made it a goal not to move from the first house we bought, so the physical trace has to be with this house. For me, it's peonies (well, they came with the place), irises (an obsession), and columbines.

For me it's Black Eyed Susans. It isn't home without them. By why not leave a sign that you planted them? I hadn't thought of this before...I do keep a gardening journal. Wouldn't it be lovely to leave a copy behind for the next owner of the house or to encourage the gardeners in the neighborhood to create a collection of such journals for safekeeping at the local library or historical society?

I tucked a note behind the trim when we were finishing our bedroom. Does that count? I said something like - "Greetings to the family who lives here in the future from the family who lived here in 1995." and I listed all our names. I hope someone finds it a century or two from now.

I love your posting idea "Breadcrumbs: Leave a physical trace behind." I am very much looking forward to more posts on this subject. I have often thought of what I can leave behind that continues to live on. I too love Lilac's and my favorite is Hydrangea's, I am leaving lots of those behind! Thank you, Marian, excellent post.

Did you know that lilacs were popular in colonial times? I can walk through our town forest and see lilacs growing near the cellar holes that date from the 1700s, and know that some housewife planted them in her dooryard. There are lilacs growing at the the Wentworth mansion in Portsmouth, NH that date from before 1750. People used to sneak slips from those plants for their own gardens. Purple lilacs are now the NH state flower.